Optimising road traffic and improving pedestrian safety in Lorquí, while promoting a sustainable mobility model, is the main objective of the project for the study of the town centre of this municipality, developed by the Chair of Mobility of the UCAM. The research is part of the actions of the Lorquí Urban Agenda Lorquí and has been awarded in the category 'Mobility Management' in the X Edition of the awards organised by the Spanish Federation of Municipalities and Provinces it is one of the eight works recognised at national level.

The study began by analysing the Avenida de la Constitución, one of the main arterial roads of the municipality, achieving a 7% reduction in CO2 emissions from traffic after the application of the proposed measures, a figure that has been improving over time. These good results led the City Council to ask the UCAM Mobility Chair, directed by Roberto Liñán and made up of experts in traffic, transport and infrastructure simulations, for a more complete study of all the roads in Lorquí.

Improving the quality of life of neighbours

To this end, an exhaustive analysis was carried out through fieldwork, mobility surveys, traffic counts, parking inventories and micro-simulations with the PTV Vissim software, allowing the research group to identify problems such as high car dependency (73.4% of journeys), at peak hours and deficiencies in pedestrian accessibility.  It is worth mentioning that the simulation project has been carried out in the Mobility Laboratory of the Region of Murcia, one of the actions of the Chair.

Lorquí is currently implementing the new actions resulting from the work, which revolve around a new road hierarchy, the rearrangement of traffic directions, improved pedestrianisation, widening of pavements, distribution of on-street parking, incorporation of a cycling infrastructure and safe school paths. All of this will make it possible to reduce emissions by more than 13%, improving the quality of life of residents.

For Roberto Liñán, head of the Sustainable Mobility and Transport Group which belongs to the UCAM's Mobility Chair, this project aims to lay the foundations for the municipality's new urban network model, being environmentally sustainable, reducing the use of fossil fuels, polluting emissions and noise levels, responding to future mobility needs and improving the quality of life of the municipality's citizens, giving the streets back to the people.  

For his part, Joaquín Hernández, Mayor of Lorquí, recalled that the City Council has been working for years on a modern and accessible municipal design, ‘based on sustainable urban planning and mobility and a renaturalisation of spaces. We are proud and satisfied that that the work of small municipalities is also recognised and made visible, and that, with a great deal of effort, we are placing ourselves at the forefront of a sustainable city model’.

Other initiatives

This is not the first work of this kind to be carried out by the UCAM Chair of Mobility and Sustainable Transport of the Metropolitan Area of Murcia. In collaboration with the public transport company Tranvía de Murcia and Transportes de Murcia, a study on mobility in this city. Similarly, in the field of university mobility, using the same techniques as those used in Lorquí, 22,000 daily trips have been counted among UCAM students, professors and staff, providing an accurate snapshot of the trips through nearly 3,000 surveys.  

In addition, within the framework of the Chair, the university is offering a University Expert Course in Mobility Planning and Management which will start next October, in blended learning mode. This course is aimed at professionals from the public and private sectors, as well as students interested in acquiring specialised training in sustainable mobility.